Victorian Police Officer Faces Action Over Anti-LGBT Online Comments
Image: A file photo of Victoria Police officers marching in the 2021 Midsumma Pride March. Photo: Mattia Abad
A senior Victorian police office is once again facing the heat over anti-LGBTQI online posts.聽
is being investigated by Victoria Police’s internal watchdog Professional Standards Command over his social media posts, The Age 谤别辫辞谤迟别诲.听
Trigger Warning: This story discusses homophobic and transphobic comments, which might be distressing to some readers. For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14. For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or .
This is not the first time that 62-year-old Staffieri, who has been with Victoria Police for over 25 years, is facing disciplinary action for his online comments.
Officer Opposes Police Walking In Pride March
Staffieri was investigated for the first time last year when he criticised the Victorian government over its decision to cancel Australia Day and Anzac Day celebrations (on account of COVID-19 restrictions), but allow the Midsumma Pride march in St Kilda (when restrictions had eased).聽
In a post on May 17, 2021 he said: “So the next time Australians are sent out to fight a war, maybe we can send out the 8000 that marched today….and try to stop the enemy by waving feathers and brightly coloured boas at them.”
A month later he took on Deputy Commissioner Neil Paterson on Yammer, the police’s internal communication platform, 蝉补颈诲.听
Paterson had posted about Victoria Police being recognised as a silver employer at the 2021 Australian LGBTQ+ inclusion awards. Staffieri questioned the spending of taxpayer dollars, which was disputed by Paterson, who said that no public money had been spent on the campaign.聽
In December 2021, Staffieri was charged with聽 disciplinary breach for his comments.聽
Calls For Sacking Of Gay Teachers
Staffieri, however, continued to make homophobic and transphobic posts. In March, he shared on Facebook an ABC report about a teacher who had founded an LGBTQI pride group for students at a school in Sydney.聽
“What a disgrace. Bad enough having gay, non-binary teachers, but to have them push their filth on students is a disgraceful crime. Why can鈥檛 we sack these teachers?” Staffieri said.
In another post in November he had mocked a colleague Bonnie Loft, who works with Gender Equality and Inclusion Command. “So you are doing tertiary education studying genders. I鈥檒l make it easy for you to pass….there are 2,” Staffieri posted.聽
Last year in August, Staffieri had聽discouraged fellow police officers from wearing purple clothing to show support for inclusivity.
“I don鈥檛 think you speak for all of Victoria Police. I, for one, certainly don鈥檛 support this nor the groups that keep pushing their personal agendas. I can鈥檛 see why we continue to throw taxpayer money at this sort of un-Christian activity,” the veteran officer posted on his LinkedIn account.
If you feel distressed reading the story, you can reach out to support services.
For 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention call Lifeline on 13 11 14
For Australia-wide LGBTQI peer support call QLife on 1800 184 527 or .
Never Trust Police Intelligence Who Have Never Known The Dominant Hemispheres Of The Brain As A Factor.eg Psychopath.
what kind of professional attention could a queer person expect from such an obvious homophobe?